Originally, I was going to have this edition of True or False on Friday, but because Extreme Rules PPV created a lot to talk about, we’re going to do this column while the iron is extremely hot.
Sheamus and Daniel Bryan’s match gave the World Heavyweight Title much-needed importance.
Joe Violet: False, but not because of anything either man has done wrong. If not for the Wrestlemania backfire, I would say true. However, the great match the two just had might not be remembered as much as the Wrestlemania match that resulted in Sheamus being booed (I don’t care what anyone says, it wasn’t because of location, it’s undeniable: Sheamus has been hosed because of that booking decision) and Bryan being cheered, despite the roles of heel and face being the other way around. The World Heavyweight Championship has been treated more as a prop for a while now, and while it needed a match like this one to make it seem legitimate again, this is proof that poor booking decisions play a major role in not only devaluing a championship, but also in keeping it in such a stagnant state.
Kyle Fitta: True. I fully comprehend it was just one match, but the World Heavyweight title’s sincerity was philandering the WWECW championship’s. At least the match was higher up on the card and not curtain-jerking. And at least it acquired time to cultivate. If anything, this match proved that the Wrestlemania 18 seconds match was undeniably a fluke due to Daniel Bryan being sidetracked as Bryan went toe-to-toe with Sheamus. The WWE dearests Sheamus for some reason– the only rational explanation to why is because he’s buddies with Triple H—so, they’re going to attempt to elevate him, even if they have to jam him down our throats. Eventually, though, the crowd may warm up to Sheamus and start taking him seriously as a title holder. Cutting his reign off rapidly to put the title on Daniel Bryan would do nil for Sheamus.
I mean before he won the title, he was getting strong reactions and I tend to believe that Daniel Bryan triumphed on all cylinders once this YES! chant turn out to be popular. Furthermore, most WWE fans recognize that Bryan’s two-times the wrestler Sheamus is. Thus, let’s wait and see in what way the crowd retorts to Sheamus after he interchanges away from this feud with Daniel Bryan. After all, even the legendary 80s Hulk Hogan was barracked while he was feuding with Jake the Snake Roberts. Tersely, I think this was at least a stepping stone for the World Heavyweight title to seem more essential. But yes, there’s still a lengthy way to go before it reaches thorough relevancy.
CM Punk winning was the wrong decision
Joe Violet: Absolutely false. True, the obvious reason for this would be because it was in his hometown, but also, this entire feud serves as a good passing of the torch. Jericho does still have a lot to offer, but to be able to work with Punk and help him get over like this is a smart business move. Punk was white-hot after Money in the Bank, and this feud may have been what he needed to get back to that level. I said before that the “CM Drunk” angle was unnecessary, which I stand by, but I also believe that the angle, added to the PPV was in Chicago, also added to what happened the last time WWE had a PPV in Chicago, and I think WWE painted themselves into a corner where Punk HAD to win. Giving Jericho the belt here would have been an interesting move which could have led to Punk/Jericho III, but having the PPV in Chicago kind of set this booking decision in stone.
Kyle Fitta: False. Though I would’ve relished seeing Jericho win the title optimistically in cheap fashion to see the amount heat he received from Punk’s hometown, plus to enhance this feud to different places to provide CM Punk and Jericho with something to do awaiting until WWE begins heating up in late Summer for Summerslam. Nonetheles, I am okay with CM Punk winning.
Jericho’s purpose of his reappearance was to pass-the-torch to CM Punk via giving him several eloquent wins over a star from the past. Jericho did just that and as a result did indeed make Punk appear as a bigger star, as well someone fans can at this time relate to as a human thanks to Punk’s sympathetic role. I did say once that I’m not the biggest Punk fan while he’s performing as a sympathetic babyface, but every top-tier babyface needs some empathy. Even the toughest son-of-a-bitch ever had some sympathy from the fans.
It will be exciting to see what program Punk’s tangled in with next since it look as if his feud with Jericho has concluded, except Jericho does something to humiliate Punk even more that sets up an additional match for the next PPV, which is as well perfectly suitable as far as I’m concerned.
If anybody believes this lost affects Jericho is mistaken. We’ve saw that it’s virtually always conceivable to recuperate from a loss. After all, Jericho been mortified in the past and wasn’t even allowed to obtain his heat with revenge, plus lost to some worthless wrestler such as Heath Slater and in spite of all that still kept his heat.
Layla’s return was underwhelming and shouldn’t have won the Divas title.
Joe Violet: I’m in the middle on this one, honestly. True on the underwhelming part, false on saying she shouldn’t have won the Divas title. She never lost it in the ring, so if WWE wanted to go with continuity (God forbid), then it’s a smart move. On the other hand, it also makes Nikki Bella one of the shortest reigning transitional champions in history. Now where does this leave Beth, or the returning Kharma? Kharma/Bella Twins seems to be a lock for a feud, but it seems that WWE’s trying to weave a couple of stories together into one angle…good idea on paper, now let’s see if they can execute.
Kyle Fitta: True. In fact, I’m going true for both. The fans remember (if they do at all) Layla for being an aggravating heel and not a babyface. I simply don’t buy her as a babyface nor did Chicago crowd. Everyone was expecting Khama. Everyone wanted Khama. They should’ve just given everyone Khama instead teasing it and waiting for the future. The Divas title urgently needs something diverse. Khama may be in fact just that.
Ultimately, Layla seems like the same old boring shit to me, even if she’s a transition period. But then again, at least I’m kind of interested where this is all going. It’s something I haven’t said about the divas division in a long, long, long time.
Brock Lesnar and John Cena’s match was innovative and well-booked.
Joe Violet: True. The match itself was surprisingly good, but what I don’t understand is the aftermath. Cena grabs a mic and says he’s leaving for a while? After getting the crap kicked out of you like that, then you just casually grab a mic and say “Bye”? The ONLY logical explanation I can come up with for that move is this: Cena is HATED in Chicago. Look at Wrestlemania 22, and look at Money in the Bank. I’m guessing it was an attempt (and a poor one) to send the fans home somewhat happy. But as far as the match itself goes, yes, it was well-executed…made Lesnar look like a juggernaut who got beat by one lucky shot.
Kyle Fitta: True. Sorry if you already read this in one of the comment sections, but I thought it was well-written so I’m using it again: Brock Lesnar and John Cena certainly put on something rather innovative. The complete presentation of the match was stellar, plus John Cena did his finest Ricky Morton impersonation when in peril. That was some great selling by Cena as I convincingly bought that Cena was in serious dangerous throughout the match. And Brock Lesnar was simply awesome pondering to the crowd with his charismatic abilities and total ring presence. But the best element to the match was the fact you believed the match could end at any time (unlike most matches that build to a finishing sequence).
It may be not the best idea for Cena to win the match, but it still makes sense since he’s leaving. Lesnar’s going to say Cena got lucky, then dominate the entire WWE and win the title, setting up a Cena vs. Lesnar rematch down the road because Lesnar’s going to have that lost scar his dominate run in WWE. At least that’s how I see it playing out. Anyway, I’d call this a star-making performance by both if they weren’t already stars. Overall, just a great idea that was well-executed. Kurt Angle-Samoa Joe Lockdown 2008 was good, but *this* was what it was looking for.
This was the best PPV of the year thus far.
Joe Violet: Absolutely true. From January to March, WWE was focused on buildups for longer-term angles (Johnny Ace, HHH/Taker, Rock/Cena), but weren’t really focusing on buildups for their actual pay-per-view shows. After the albatross that was the Wrestlemania main event was off their back, and the other major angles had been blown off, now WWE had room to actually concentrate on a PPV. This pay-per-view had better booking, better angles, and better quality matches than the previous three pay-per-views this year. In my opinion, the Extreme Rules gimmick wasn’t even necessary; this pay-per-view is what Wrestlemania SHOULD have been. The stipulations even seemed secondary, honestly.
Kyle Fitta: True. Well, to be honest, I’ve only seen every WWE ppv and a few TNA ppvs this year. I’m not a big fan of the IPPV concept or the companies that are putting them on right now. From the ones I saw, I would say yes. Almost everything from top to bottom, aside from the buffer matches and Cody Rhodes vs. Big Show being meh (it’s in the dictionary so I can use it), this show delivered big time. When was the seriously the last WWE PPV that had three stand out matches? Well, I can answer that; it was Money in the Bank. Yeah, fuck you Chicago for getting all the good shit.
I didn’t hate Wrestlemania. In fact, I liked it, but I do believe this PPV was more memorable than WrestleMania. I’m sorry but you cannot even compare Rock vs. Cena’s typical WWE style match to this innovative gem we saw tonight. Everything important delivered, everything important was well-booked, and the show created some intriguing cliff-hangers.
That said, I’d like to add something to this. The announcing tonight was extremely sub-par and the wrestlers had to overcome it. Announcing is suppose to help a match not hurt a match. Aside from them acting like immature men who love to argue and Booker T’s cliches that we’re used to, they also gave away two finishes tonight. One was the Big Show vs. Cody Rhodes match where Cole had to explain to us that if Rhodes’ foot went through the table he would have lost. The other was in the main event when Lawler told us that Cena had the chain when he was clearly hiding it for the element of surprise. Obviously, this announcing team is known for consistency stinking up joint each show, and WWE seriously needs to take in consideration how bad they are and make some much needed changes.
Otherwise, this PPV was the best it could’ve been and easily the best PPV I saw this year and quite frankly the best I’ve seen since Money in the Bank.
